Ten Years
by Alien Altered
Summary: It had been 10 years since that day, the day that had fractured Veronica Mar’s picture perfect world of pink. 10 years since Duncan had returned home to find his big sister with her skull smashed in...Snapshots of characters lives 10 years after Lily died
1. Intro

Disclaimer: My dog doesn't believe me, but I do not own any of these characters

**Disclaimer: **My dog doesn't believe me, but I do not own any of these characters.

It had been 10 years since that day, the day that had fractured Veronica Mar's picture perfect world of pink. 10 years since Duncan had returned home to find his big sister with her skull smashed in. 10 years since things had been as they once believed they were meant to be.


	2. Logan

Disclaimer: Despite my delusions, I don't own them

**Disclaimer: **Despite my delusions, I don't own them. Or the song (10 Years Today, by Bullet For My Valentine).

**P.S: **I tried to keep pairings to a bare minimum; I think you'll find the only pairings in the flash-backs.

**Logan…**

Crashing onto his comfy couch, Logan flicked on some music and closed his eyes. Today had been particularly draining; with the memories and the current work. But it had been worth it today, as it was most days. Logan had ended up in a career that he loved and was great at. It wasn't acting, and it'd never make him famous, but to some kids it made him a hero. Logan worked for Child Services, he helped children who suffered at the hands of those they should love most, find a safe home. Unlike some of his co-workers Logan understood the pain some of those kids were feeling, he recognised himself in so many of the children he helped, and by helping these children, they'd helped him. He'd finally found closure on his parents – on his fathers abuse, his mothers neglect, his mothers suicide. That's not saying that he didn't still hate his father more than anything, but he'd accepted things and moved on, mostly.

His kitten jumped onto the couch and slinked across to Logan's stomach. She circled twice before settling down and purring. "Hey Pandora." Logan said as he stroked her silky white fur. Pandora had been Logan's friend (he hated calling her his 'pet') for exactly a year now. She had one blue eye, one brown, snow white fur, with black feet, and was gorgeous. He'd seen her exactly a year ago, as he walked through the market with memories floating through his mind. As soon as his eyes settled on the odd kitten Logan's mind flashed.

_Lily lay with her head in Logan's lap as Veronica and Duncan sat cuddled beside them. Lily was the first, as always, to interrupt the silence. "When I die, I think I'll be a cat. I'll be white with stunning blue eyes, and a rich owner, and all the other cats will be jealous. Because I'll have the long legs and shining fur. Princess, I'll be called Princess." Logan laughed at the typically 'Lily' comment, and Duncan rolled his eyes. But as usual, Veronica joined in the discussion._

"_Why princess? It's so… blah."_

"_Blah?" Lily laughed. "Fine, what name do you think? Oh wise one." Veronica thought for a minute before smiling._

"_Pandora."_

"_Pandora?" Lily tried it on her tongue and considered it._

"_I think it's cute." Logan chimed in._

"_I like it. I'll be Pandora, the most beautiful kitten in the world…."_

No, Logan didn't believe that his beloved kitten was the re-incarnation of Lily, or anything like that. But he couldn't resist buying the demonic fur-ball, and now he was glad he hadn't.

Looking at the photo that sat at the end of the couch, facing him, Logan glanced to the phone. The photo was a personal favourite of Logan's, everyone was so in character (well for the people they once were). Lily was in the middle, naturally, with a bottle of Vodka in one hand, and an arm around Logan's neck. Beside Lily was Veronica laughing at the blonde surfer standing besides her. She had an arm wrapped around Dick's torso as he and Beav had a water-pistol stand off. Duncan was next to Logan, smiling and laughing like the rest, and he seemed so normal – they all did. No, empty smiles, fake laughter or broken hearts, just them; happy, together, young, and free.

Logan ordered pizza for dinner, again, and promised himself that tomorrow night he'd cook dinner, but he knew he wouldn't. The days had become too short, and his task-list too long. Besides, who did it hurt? He got fed, the pizza boy got paid; everyone wins! He walked to the kitchen and opened his sparsely stocked fridge, knowing full-well that he needed to go shopping soon. But there was something nice about going to a fridge, and finding it empty. Something even nicer about being able to walk from one end of his place to another in less than a minute. This place, this home, was unlike any he'd lived in before; it was small and cheap and homely. There were no expensive paintings on the walls, just trinkets, photos and other items with memories pinned to them.

Settling onto the couch with his pizza, a bottle of vodka, and Pandora, Logan began to watch 'Can't Hardly Wait'. It was his tradition, a tradition he knew Lily would enjoy…

… _Ten years ago,_

_I got a call that nearly killed me,_

_Repeat yourself, my hands are shaking…_

**P.S. ** Please, please review!!


	3. Dick

Disclaimer: It sucks to not own them, although if I did, I might just go delirious from happiness

**Disclaimer: **It sucks to not own them, although if I did, I might just go delirious from happiness.

**Dick…**

Dick pulled off his tie and dropped into his large office chair. He hated ties, they had a way of constricting his airways, but then again he wasn't a big fan on having to tell the story of why he set up the company to strangers, yet he'd just done that. He hated the meetings with possible sponsors, but he could always get through by remembering how much this would help the kids. Like Logan, Dick had gone into a completely unexpected field, but unlike Logan, Dick created his business.

Dick had now successfully set up and ran 'Busy Beaver's'. It was a foundation set up to assist victims of child-abuse. Many times the cops passed on children that they feared to be victims but had no hard proof. You could come and talk to the counsellors or just hang out, and remain anonymous if you wanted. Everything was 100 confidential and the kids all loved it. Probably as much as Dick did. Dick loved watching the children grow to trust him and his associates and finally opening up. Then often, Dick would pass their cases onto Logan, but always check-up on the kids. It was something Dick loved doing. It didn't ease his guilt about not finding out about Beaver 'til it was too late, but he finally began to understand why it was so hard for Beaver to say it aloud, why he never told Dick.

Looking out his window and noticing some of the kids surfing nearby, Dick debated joining them, normally he would, but it was the 10 year anniversary of Lily's murder and he was feeling melancholy. Still, he was about to grab his wet-suit and board, figuring it might cheer him up, when he noticed the little blonde girl standing in his doorway. She had uneven pig-tails, and bitten fingernails on hands that loosely held a toy bunny to her chest. The girl's arms had cigarette burns on them and her cheekbone was faded purple but when he looked at her she smiled brightly, showing off her missing tooth. This young girl, Janie, had been abused by her father for years, and now he was finally going to prison. Everything had been settled yesterday, her father was in jail, his assets frozen for Janie until she was 21 and now for one last surprise. Dick crouched down to the little girl's level and smiled tiredly. "How would you like to come home and live with me?" Janie's eyes widened and her mouth drooped open a bit, before she beamed and threw herself into Dick's arms, nodding.

He'd been considering it for a while now, adopting one of the kids. And when he'd met Janie he knew that he wanted it to be her. She had been through so much, and yet she was still sweet. One of the first times Dick had met Janie, a little boy had fallen over and grazed his knee, he was crying, so Janie went over and hugged him. She was boyish in the sense that she loved to do things like play soccer and swim, but she was still a little girl. And although she never spoke, she was amazing.

On the anniversary of the loss of a family member, Dick was now welcoming another.

…_When I was told, my friend was gone,_

_I felt so guilty, a thousand questions left unanswered…_


	4. Veronica

Disclaimer: Same as always

**Disclaimer: **Same as always.

**Veronica…**

She'd finally made it. Veronica walked into her new office with a box full of her things and looked out the window. Smiling at the sun she questioned, "So, I finally made it, Lily. Are you proud?" Veronica had worked long and hard to win this promotion. And by now, even without the promotion, she was already one of the most respected agents. Most of the female agents had handed in their guns years ago, but not Veronica Mars, that wasn't her style. She'd fought and she'd risen, gone far above those agents that had laughed at her when she walked into the room.

Veronica had found a place she felt like she belonged. Sure, sometimes she felt like an outsider for being the only girl to get to such a level, most of the time she didn't care. And there were still rumours, about her sex-life, about why she became an agent, about how much she liked control. Recently, someone had leaked about her being THE Lily Kane's best-friend. The aim had been to discredit her, embarrass her even, but all it had done was earned her a few more sympathetic looks, some more respect, and a greater amount of congratulations. Few people can survive an event like that and remain sane.

The pain was still there, all of it, but it was dulled now. She loved her job – it was hard, tiring, and taxing as hell, but at the end of the day she knew that she'd made the world that much safer, and maybe she'd even saved someone's best-friend from the fate of her first.

When Veronica arrived home to the apartment she shared with fellow agent David Malt, she was jumped upon by their new puppy dog. David was her best-friend in the force and a complete saviour. He was also gay, which meant to awkwardness, about anything. As a young child, David's elder brother had been murdered, and his mother suicided not long after. So he understood Veronica like no other co-worker. He understood the pain, and the dark patches, he never took the mood swings personally or totally freaked out over an unexplained melt-down, because he got it, all of it.

Their new puppy, Damon, was a little bundle of cuddles. He was a little golden Labrador with silky ears and a wet nose. The perfect distraction from the horrors of work. Walking in to the lounge room, David handed her a bunch of Lilies and hugged her. It was their thing – every time something worth being congratulated on happened, David would buy her a bunch of Lilies; it was a way of congratulating her and reminding her that Lily would always be around, and would be proud.

Keith came to visit her every month, but they spoke weekly, if not more. It was all a case of when Veronica made it home in time to call, and when Keith was at home.

She still took photos, and had actually managed to sell some, but as she was often strained for time, her camera went neglected for weeks. Still, even with her busy, tiring and draining work, Veronica loved her job and her life. She knows things would have been different had Lily still been alive, but she's no longer sure which life she would've chosen.

After showing, dressing and putting on her make-up Veronica walked out to the lounge room to find David waiting. He bowed mock-gentlemanly, and extended his arm to her. It was time to party! This was her ritual, on this day each year, she partied, and pretended that Lily was still there…

…_I'll bleed if you want me to,_

_I'll serenade before I do,_

_I'll bleed if you want me to._

_On and on although you're gone,_

_Candles burn without a flame on_

_Our final call to you, I know you're listening,_

_How could you leave us that way?_

_Where did you go, ten years today?..._


	5. Duncan

Disclaimer: My dog doesn't believe me, but I do not own any of these characters

**Disclaimer: **My dog doesn't believe me, but I do not own any of these characters.

"Lily! Watch out for that wave!" Duncan called as his daughter was dunked under by the icy water. She resurfaced with a laugh and brushed her long blonde hair from her face. "Oops."

After running away, Duncan had decided to settle in Australia, and raise his young daughter in the suburbs of Melbourne. It was a nice change from Neptune, and the endless beaches were great for surfing, and teaching Lily how to master the waves.

Running towards her father, Lily brushed her hand through her hair again, bringing Duncan's attention to the gorgeous blonde locks; the same blonde hair that she carelessly tied into a pony-tail everyday. Grabbing his arm and stubbornly dragging Duncan towards the ocean, Lily smirked at him, in that face, that face that he'd seen too often. The face that said 'Haha, I know that you're going to do this because you love me and you have to, because you just can't deny me anything.' And that face was damn-right.

Duncan saw so much of his ex-girlfriends in Lily, as well as, on occasions, a certain resemblance to her predecessor (Lily Kane the First). Sometimes he wondered why it was that all the girls he loved had blonde hair. Lily was much like Meg in kindness and her way of accepting that she too had weaknesses, something that Veronica and Lily the first seemed to have trouble grasping. And she was tough, and suspicious, always ready to help people before herself, just like Veronica, she even had that head-tilt thing going. Sometimes Duncan even saw some of Lily the first in her smirk or the quirk of her eyebrow. But his Lily was her own person. She did things on her own terms, treated everyone fairly, and was always prepared to prove herself. So while she reminded Duncan so much of the other three important women in his life, Duncan would always know that Lily was not them, and he never expected her to be.

As the water chilled and the clouds rolled in, Duncan and Lily jumped into the car and drove towards the airport. It was a big risk, but it was worth it, to honour Lily the first. Besides, she'd have loved the danger.

…_Ten years ago, I stood beside the wood that held you,_

_I must sit down my legs are shaking,_

_We let you go,_

_With gifts of plectrums for your journey,_

_And melodies to help you on your way._

_I'll bleed if you want me to,_

_I'll serenade before I do,_

_I'll bleed if you want me to…_

**So, love it? Hate it? Anything it? Please review and let me know. My original idea was to do all the characters (Wallace, Mac, Veronica, Duncan, Logan, Dick, Beav, Keith, Eli, Lamb, etc…) but now I'm just doing the characters that were in Neptune at the time of Lily's murder. **


	6. Weevil

Disclaimer: Can't think of anything witty to say

**Disclaimer: **My shrink has recently revealed the truth – I don't own these characters…

**Weevil…**

Kissing his little baby boy on the head, Weevil grabbed his bag and sped to work in his car (he still rode his motorbike often, but to work he usually took his car). He and Felix owned their own Vehicle Repair Workshop, but he rarely worked there – his main job was at Mars Investigations. Originally Keith had been reluctant to employ Weevil, mainly because of his reputation and past offences, but now Weevil was almost as vital to the business as Veronica had been. Weevil had the right balance of brains, strength, street-smarts, common sense and personality to suit the job. He'd learnt this time how to control his anger and not take all matters into his own violent hands, this time he knew the cost, he knew better.

He'd settled down a lot in the past decade, learnt many lessons the hard way, and gained more than knowledge. He now had a wife and child who he loved more than all the motorbikes in the world. Felix too had settled down and had offspring (2 little girls), and they lived next door. The Vehicle Repair Workshop was constantly gaining popularity, and they had lots of loyal customers. And he loved his job at Mars Investigations. It seemed that for once, all the odds were stacked in his favour, everything was going amazingly well, and his life was content.

Weevil didn't think of Lily too often anymore, but the occasional random memory would pop into his head, but he was no idiot, he knew today's date. Today was the 10 year anniversary of Lily's murder. So today he vowed to return home early, and celebrate all that Lily missed out on. Sometimes he believes that the most tragic part of Lily's murder was all that she missed out on. He had once believed it was the heartbreak of those left behind, but no more. Now that he's older, Weevil finds the saddest part is that Lily never got the chance to marry or have children, or buy her own house, or decide a career path; her opportunity was stolen from her with last breath.

Something that Keith had never picked up on until recently was that Weevil has always called him Sheriff, always. It's a sign of respect, and one of the things that Keith has discovered many overlook, all the little things Weevil does that compensate for the larger crimes he once committed.

Today Weevil worked that much harder, he skipped lunch and pushed tougher than usual. It was part of his tribute to Lily, solving a case, maybe saving a life, possibly granting a stranger the chances that were robbed from his rich blonde haired lover with the bright laugh.

Weevil honked the horn as he arrived home and before he even reached the door his wife and son were outside. Handing his wife a bouquet of flowers, he kissed her, before lifting up his son and twirling him around. "I love you both so much." They cooked dinner that night, together, as a family, and spent the night dancing to CD's, watching movies and playing games. After all, what better way to honour the dead, than to celebrate all they could have had?

…_On and on although you're gone,_

_Candles burn without a flame on,_

_Our final call to you I know you're listening,_

_How could you leave us that way?_

_Where did you go ten years today? ..._

**Note: **I wasn't sure about how to end this, I think it sounds a bit spiteful, but I couldn't think of anything else. So, hope you enjoyed. Please review!


	7. Jake

Jake…

**Jake…**

You spend the day locked in your house, staring out the window at that fateful spot near the pool, looking at old photos, watching home-made movies and videos; just simply remembering the daughter that was taken from you before you appreciated what she had become.

You don't know where Celeste is, don't even really care these days, and you begin to realise that you've now lost the only things that ever mattered to you – Lily, Duncan, Celeste, Lianne, and the dream of Veronica as your child. You still have the money, still live in the mansion, and you're more famous and rich than ever now, but that never mattered that much to you anyway. You're lonely, you're broken, and you've never felt so empty in your life.

Lily had always been wild, a streak you were pleased to see she inherited from you. You'd never wanted her to be the high-society daughter Celeste had wanted. You'd loved her unruliness, laughed at her pranks, and always adored her bright smiles and laughter. She went out of the way to piss of her mother, but to you she was always the adoring daughter, to you she was the same Lily she had always been.

The house has seemed dark and ominous since her death, even when Duncan was around. Now it was eerily silent, and vacant, with shadows of laughter haunting every corner. Some days you come home and almost expect to see Veronica, Duncan, Dick, Logan, and Lily laughing near the pool. But Lily's dead, Duncan's been missing for years, Dick's busy with his foundation, Logan lives in a cramped apartment with a hectic job, and Veronica is a tough FBI agent. Veronica, Logan, and Dick all keep in touch with you via letters, phone calls and e-mails; something you never expected. But in a way it made sense. You had cared more about Dick and Logan than there own fathers did, and you care more about Veronica than Lianne seems to any more. You're pretty sure it was Veronica's idea, for them to all keep in contact with you, and you're so grateful. Their e-mails, phone calls, and letters, are the only brightness in your life these days.

Something that Veronica said the other day has stuck in your mind, and you're thinking of setting up a foundation, aside from the 'Lily Kane memorial Scholarship', you're just not sure what yet. You might set up something to help grieving families, a support centre with shrinks and a lot of tissues. Or you could adopt another child. You have enough money, and you think more on the ideas through the day, because you want to do more than work your well paying job and hear about how your surrogate children are being heroic.

You're planning a party, for tomorrow night. A tribute to the daughter you loved. And it's not going to be anything like Celeste wants. You've already set up the strobes, and booked the DJ, the bar is stocked, and now you just have to wait and see who turns up. It's something you know Lily would love, and that's kind of the point.

You turn on a CD, sit back watching another home-video, and the house doesn't seem so empty any more.

_I'll bleed if you want me to,_

_I'll bleed if you want me to,_

_I'll bleed if you want me to._

_On and on although you're gone,_

_Candles burn without a flame on,_

_Our final call to you, I know you're listening,_

_How could you leave us that way?_

_Where did you go, ten years today?_

_Where did you go, ten years today?_

_Where did you go…_

**Note: **Please review, it will inspire me to finish this fic. I hope you all liked it!

Thanks for reading.

x


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